


Family

by Anthony_Draws



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: I suck at tagging, Shortly after Levi's Squad dies, Universe Alteration, but definitely happy, mostly - Freeform, no idea where I'm going with this..., not exactly a funny story, this fanfiction is really just characters dealing with a baby
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-20
Updated: 2018-05-20
Packaged: 2019-05-09 11:29:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,885
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14715168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anthony_Draws/pseuds/Anthony_Draws
Summary: Levi never expected having to handle a newborn, but with everything that happened, he sees no other option. So he takes onto the poor little girl and brings her back to the Survey Corps headquarters. She becomes the first Survey Corps baby. But it appears dealing with titans is a lot easier than dealing with little children...





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter is mostly an introduction, so it's a bit shorter than the others will be.

Levi knew that death always came back to haunt you, no matter how much you tried to forget about it. He had lost his squad only two months ago and the wounds were still too fresh for him to even pretend he had forgotten about them already.

 

The reminder of how much was left of everyone that died came when he ran into Eld‘s wife on the street. She must have been so close to giving birth at that point...Eld was always looking forward to becoming a father and Levi knew he had been ready, too. He had read all those books about parenting, he had bought clothes for the baby already!!

 

Before that last expedition, they had talked a lot about the meaning of family and Erwin had already allowed Eld half a year off once the baby was born. Everything was ready.

 

Levi didn‘t look at her for too long, he made sure to hurry by so he could try to forget about everything. He didn‘t want those constant reminders…

 

* * *

 

 

The next time Levi thought about Eld was right after he heard that the child was born now. He decided to buy some flowers and at least congratulate her, even though he was sure everyone knew that the situation was not exactly a happy one.

 

As soon as he knocked on the door though, he realized just how unhappy it was.

 

The poor woman was pale and skinny, despite just having given birth. Her eyes were sunken and she looked terribly unhappy. Of course she did.

 

There weren’t many words spoken between them before she started crying and fell into Levi’s arms, holding onto him tightly.

 

“I simply can’t love her! I wish I could but I just can’t! She only upsets me and makes me cry!”

 

Levi was no expert in any of this, but he knew that some women felt like that after giving birth, especially if they were to raise their children alone. But there was nothing he could do now, nothing he could say.

 

“I wish I would have lost her...she shouldn’t have been born!”

 

And despite everything, he kept feeling like those words were directed towards him in a more personal way. Of course he knew it was just his mind playing tricks on him, painfully reminding him of his own childhood, growing up without love, lonely and abused.

 

“I think I will give her away. I can’t take care of her, I can’t love her. I don’t want to hurt her...but I know that I will.”

 

“I take her.”

 

Levi surprised himself saying that. After all he didn’t know how to properly raise a child.

 

“I’ll take her with me and take care of her. What is her name?”

 

Despite not really having a plan and not having involved Erwin in the idea, he simply knew that no matter what happened, no child should have to be lonely and neglected. And if that meant he had to adopt a child, he would. At least until there was a better option.

 

“I… I didn’t name her yet. I couldn’t bring myself to give her a name, really.”

 

So his first challenge would be to name a human being in a way nobody would regret it for the next 50 years. Great.


	2. Permission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi has to convince Erwin and gets emotional. All those memories of his own childhood hurt and he doesn't want the girl to go through the same or worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the feels (again). It will get better soon.

Levi was afraid. Afraid of knocking on the door in front of him, afraid of what would happen once it opened. He clutched the little bundle closer to his chest.

 

This was stupid, all of this was stupid!! But he had to tell Erwin. This was not something he could hide, he didn’t want to hide it anyway, but confessing that he had just made the decision to take in a child so it didn’t have the same childhood he did...Erwin didn’t like this sort of reasoning. Hell, Levi didn’t like it either, it was impulsive and dumb of him!

 

Before he had a chance to further think of a way to properly explain himself, he heard heavy footsteps down the hall. Not good.

 

“You got a child?”

 

Oh great. Mike. He should have known. Especially since newborn babies had a pretty distinct smell…

 

“When did that happen?”

 

“Just a couple minutes ago, really. If you’d leave now. Please!” Levi hissed. He didn’t need this right now!!

 

At least he now got the courage to open the door. Stepping quietly inside, he didn’t manage to look straight at Erwin.

 

He must have looked ridiculous, clinging onto a bundle of blankets, his shirt stretching strangely since he didn’t know how to properly hold a baby without pressing it against his chest which made his shirt ride up, forcing him to try and push it down again. One of his hip bones was sticking out below. His hair was ruffled from the wind outside, too. He was a mess compared to his usual self.

 

Erwin finished writing something before calmly looking up at him and wishing him a good afternoon. Then his brows furrowed. Of course.

 

“I know this looks very weird, but I promise it is only much weirder than it already looks.”

 

Erwin was speechless, opening and closing his mouth a few times, but not making a sound, so Levi decided he might as well keep talking.

 

“The child has nobody else. It was just going to suffer, so I brought it here. Her father is dead and her mother is suicidal and incapable of taking care of her.”

 

“Levi, you can’t take care of a child!”

 

“Yes. I know. But we can. You and me and the others.”

 

He was aware how much he sounded like a teenager trying to convince his parents of something stupid.

 

“She is Eld’s daughter and I promised to help him back when he was still… here. So I will. The girl did nothing to deserve this shit! She needs a home. And not some shithole where she’ll rot until she hopefully dies before things get too fucked up. Do you want to be responsible for that?? Her mother could kill herself at any moment! Who would feed her? She’d slowly starve, unable to help herself, terrified of her surroundings!! Erwin, do you want that??”

 

“No, I-”

 

“Do you want her to pray that someone might find her squalid body before the muscle cramps start when she has no more energy left?? Do you want her to puke all over herself and consider drinking it back up because she can’t get any fucking food??”

 

“Levi...”

 

“If she even lived that long!! With how bad her mother looked, she might have been dead within days! So what the fuck ever if I don’t know how to raise a child! It’s still better than having her suffer like that!”

 

“Alright.”

 

“So she will stay here!”

 

“Levi! I allow it.” Erwin finally raised his voice just enough to get Levi to stop his rant. This must have hit very close to home for him, seeing a child like this.

 

After taking a deep breath, Levi mumbled a soft “yes”.

 

“I still expect a proper explanation tomorrow. I need to know how you plan to take care of a child, what you will do during expeditions and what your financial plan is. Of course I am willing to help you, but you need to state clearly how you plan to do those things. It is already difficult enough to get funds and I highly doubt we can get support just to buy diapers.”

 

Levi nodded. If that was all it took to convince Erwin, then he would do that. No problem.

 

“Now let me see the child. After all it will live with us from now on and I intend to know everyone I live with.”

 

Erwin stood up and walked towards Levi and the child, raising his arms towards the bundled up baby. Levi gently hoisted her up high enough for the other to properly grab her. It was a strange moment, a strange feeling, handing someone a baby, a living creature that he would take care of, that he promised to protect.

 

Erwin held her carefully, rubbing small circles on her back. There was no doubt in her being extremely young. Her skin was still wrinkly and soft, she looked like she was squinting. Clearly, she had never opened her eyes before.

 

“How old exactly is she?”

 

“Two days…”

 

“Huh...how do we feed her then? She’ll need breast milk.”

 

“Apparently with her mother having these suicidal thoughts her milk tastes different or some shit...the baby doesn’t drink it.”

 

“Ah…so…now what?”

 

“Wet nursing? Or just plain milk? I’m not sure. And I don’t know if asking Hanji for help with this would be helpful.”

 

Erwin twirled his fingers through the few thin hairs on the baby’s head. It almost looked like the child still had to grow into its own skin, but with what Levi had said he assumed that was because it didn’t get enough milk before.

 

“Just ask Moblit.” Erwin suggested before handing the baby back to Levi. “He still has access to all the libraries Hanji has, but he might be a lot more calm about it and not hurt the baby.”

 

Levi just nodded, wrapping the kid back up properly and making sure he held her tightly enough but not too tight either. Good, so he had to find Moblit next while simultaneously making sure Hanji didn’t see them.

 

“I expect her to stay in your room for now, maybe we’ll find a crib somewhere.”

 

“Yeah. Until then she can have my bed, I don’t use it anyway.”

 

“So. What is her name?” Erwin finally asked as Levi was already turning to leave.

 

“I decided to call her Petra.”


	3. Big Brother Moblit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moblit manages to give the little girl her first meal and takes care of her. Things are finally looking a little better for Petra!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Moblit is a good boy who is trying very hard.

“I found something on infant feeding…” Moblit mumbled while bringing over a giant book, putting it down on the desk with a loud thump and opening it on the page he needed. “This supposedly helps bring children through their first year with minimal problems. It’s cow’s milk, wheat and malt flour, and potassium bicarbonate, which is a carbon salt. I can…I can mix that, but it’s expensive.”

 

Levi set on a chair by the desk, still holding onto the baby. He wanted a cup of tea, but was too afraid of accidentally spilling it and hurting the baby, so for now he had to do without it.

 

By now it was nearing midnight, finding the right book had taken quite some time already and there were other things they had to take care of. Petra was asleep again, she was probably very exhausted and too hungry to cry much.

 

“How quickly can you make some of that? It’s important. She didn’t eat in a long time, if she did ever before.” Levi sighed.

 

“Ah…I will see what I can do. Stay here, I’ll go and try to find everything!” Moblit smiled and ran off, clearly understanding how dire the situation was for the small child. The girl needed to be fed.

 

It began to dawn on Levi that he might have made a mistake. He was incapable of taking care of a child, absolutely not qualified to take care of anyone, really, and this place was probably the worst place for a child to grow up in, too. There was so much death around here.

 

But what else could he have done? Giving a child up for adoption these days did but one thing: make sure it was alone forever. With how many children lost their families due to the titan attacks the orphanages were overcrowded already.

 

“I’m sorry for doing this to you…”

 

In a way it felt like he couldn’t do anything right. All he tried turned out to be a mistake lately.

 

Suddenly Moblit ran back into the room, carrying a porcelain bottle filled with the substitute milk.

 

“Here, in the big hole on the top you fill the milk and this little hole on the small end is where she drinks out of.” He explained. When Levi didn’t react right away, he reached out to hold Petra himself. Levi let go, allowing Moblit to hold the fragile child.

 

The sudden movement woke her up, making her whimper softly against Moblit’s chest. He was almost shocked at how weak her voice was. The child clearly was not healthy and very weak. He quickly picked the bottle up again, pressing it gently against the lips of the baby. When the little bundle began to drink, he sighed in relief.

 

“Sir, I can take care of her for a while, it’s no problem at all!” Moblit offered and as much as Levi wanted to deny, he was terribly tired. He simply nodded, gave Moblit a gentle pad on the shoulder and decided to head for his room. Both knew Levi never slept for long anyway.

 

Moblit sat down with the girl, gently whispering to her to calm her down a little. They had a few hours to kill now.

 

“Shh, don’t drink it all at once, you’re gonna get hiccups.” He murmurs and pulls the bottle back a little every now and then. The little girl needs to hold it all in with how little she ate before.

 

“See? You’re doing so good! You’re okay now. You’ll be fine now, we’re all here for you.”

 

As soon as Petra drank up, she became a lot more lively, clenching her little fists and yawning. Moblit felt like crying out of sheer happiness. So the girl was going to be fine!!

 

“What a good girl you are! You did so well!” He praised her as he softly pat her back to get her to burp. He only knew the basics of how to handle a child, but he was set on doing his very best. And the girl was so cute, how could he not try his hardest?

 

As soon as she let out a small burp, Moblit giggled and wiped her mouth with a tissue before getting up and heading for his room, bringing the bottle back to the tea kitchen on his way there.

 

Up in his room he gently put Petra onto his pillow, sitting down cross-legged next to her after taking off his boots.

 

“Uhh…I don’t have any children’s books, but I can try to tell you a story from my childhood to help you fall asleep. Would that be nice? Yes?” He smiled as he took her little feet and softly wiggled them, trying to animate her to move a little. After all he had to make sure she had taken in enough calories to survive the night.

 

When she kicked back softly, he sighed happily and started telling her a story about the first time he ever saw a horse. Within a few minutes she fell asleep, yawning every now and then and moving lightly in her sleep.

 

Moblit get ready for bed as well after that, making sure he was still dressed enough for it to not be embarrassing should someone come looking for him.

 

Despite him expecting Levi to come to his room, the next person knocking was not the Captain. It was his direct superior, loud and excited as per usual.

 

When Hanji kicked the door open and squealed, Moblit almost jumped. He quickly pulled Petra into his arms to make sure she stayed calm while shooting his squad leader an angry look.

 

“Oi, Moblit! Since when do you have a baby?? How cute!! Ahh, it’s so small!”

 

“Shh, quiet!” Moblit wiggled on his bed, trying desperately to keep the exhausted girl from waking up. “She just fell asleep…and she is not my child.”

 

Hanji quickly slapped her hands in front of her mouth, but still smiling broadly. Then she stepped closer and leaned down as if to examine the tiny body in the other’s arms. It felt like the exact opposite of watching the titans they managed to capture so far. Everything about this tiny thing was so fragile and small and vulnerable.

 

“Soooo~”

 

“Levi took her in. Her parents aren’t able to take care of her and she probably didn’t even get to eat until today. He was tired so I took care of her. Her name’s Petra.”

 

“So cute!! He took her in?? That doesn’t sound like him at all! But very cute, very sweet. Maybe Levi is getting soft with his old age!” Hanji laughed, then quieted down again when Moblit glared at her. “Does Erwin know?”

 

“I think so, but nobody else does, I think. And there is a problem.”

 

“Oh no, don’t tell me Erwin won’t allow her here!”

 

“That’s not it. It’s more of a financial problem. We need a milk substitute for her and that’s terribly expensive. Erwin doesn’t even know yet.”

 

They both looked at the little girl that was sleeping so peacefully, not aware of how rough the world out there was.

“No no no. We will do that. She will get enough food, yeah? We can do that.” Hanji assured, smiling, then ruffling Moblit’s hair. “Trust me!”

 

And with that she was gone again. This could go two ways, they either got all the breast milk substitute they needed or they all ended up in huge trouble with Zackly himself. All Moblit could do now was hope for the best.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked it!! :D


End file.
